Tony Blair defends plans of terror suspects detention for three months

British Prime Minister Tony Blair on Tuesday defended his government's plans to detain terror suspects for three months without charge, and insisted police had made a compelling case for the new powers.

The measure is included in the government's new Counter-Terrorism Bill, which Blair hopes will become law by the year's end. But the main opposition parties have threatened to block the measure in Parliament, the AP says.

In his monthly news conference Tuesday, Blair said he would not grant every request police made, but insisted officers had made a "good and compelling" case for extending the detention period from the current 14 days to three months.

T.E.